Building boom in the Shores
Home construction is a key indicator
Richard Anguiano Correspondent –
Source: Ocala.com
SILVER SPRINGS SHORES — Business appears to be picking up in Silver Springs Shores again, with the return of new home construction being a key indicator.
Marion County issued 201 permits for single-family homes in July, up from 91 in July 2016 and 76 in July 2015. Of those 201 permits the county issued last month, records indicate 49 — almost one-quarter — were for construction in the Shores.
By comparison, the county issued 29 permits in July for On Top of the World, 27 for Stone Creek by Del Webb, and 21 for Marion Oaks.
While Marion County’s southwestern quadrant remains its fastest-growing, the spate of building in the Shores, in southeastern Marion County, is spurring everything from commercial development to sales of existing homes there, Realtors and developers say.
Dale Barron handles existing-home sales as the owner of Coldwell Banker Ellison Realty in Ocala. He is also a partner with Jerry Guerra in Thoroughbred Builders, a home construction company. Barron said Thoroughbred was among the first to resume construction of new homes in the Shores two years ago.
The first signal of favorable conditions, according to Barron, was a decrease in distressed properties — foreclosures and short sales — in the community.
“We were no longer at 25 to 30 percent of distressed inventories,” Barron said, adding the next indicator was when existing home prices rose to at least 15 percent of a new home’s price.
“We’d substantively been seven to eight years since any new homes had been constructed at all,” Barron said. “So I stepped out and built two new homes, knowing it was fairly safe in terms relative to the resale market, to the new home market.
“Those sold very, very quick,” he said. “One we sold at the framing stage and we sold two more at the same time. We went ahead and constructed the second one and had the final lot for the third one. So you knew it was solid.”
One selling point, Barron said, is the widening of Baseline Road south of Maricamp Road, which enhances the Shores as a location for a sizable population of Marion County residents who work in Lake or Sumter counties.
Barron said Thoroughbred Builders tries not to build more than three or four homes at a time and has three underway in the Shores. Among higher-volume builders, county records indicate Armstrong Homes was issued the most permits in the Shores in July, with 11.
Silver Springs Shores is also home to the Lake Diamond Golf & Country Club gated community. Gina Junglas, community manager and Realtor with Adams Homes of Northwest Florida, which builds homes in Lake Diamond, said the community has 26 vacant lots left. Junglas said Adams had 73 lots available in 2008, when she joined the company. The majority sold in the last three years, “with things really picking up in 2015,” she said.
“As fast as we’re building them, they’re selling in Lake Diamond,” Junglas said.
She attributes the brisk sales to new home prices starting around $150,000 and maintenance fees of around $85 a month, not including golf. Junglas said another contributing factor is what she sees as a lack of existing homes for sale in the Shores.
“Many Realtors bring people to me because there’s nothing out there for them to show,” Junglas said. “For the same price as a new home, they’re having to fix up an older home, which doesn’t have a warranty. It’s just a better deal.”
Barron agrees that existing home inventory is low — to a point.
“Looking over the metrics over a year’s time, year over year, what you find is we’re selling stuff faster,” he said. “There’s not as much stock on the shelves, but we’re restocking the shelves faster.”
Meanwhile, the developer’s maxim that commercial projects “follow rooftops” appears to be holding true. John Rudnianyn’s International Property Services Corp. brought Wal-Mart to Silver Springs Shores in 2013. In the last year, Florida Credit Union and Wendy’s opened in the company’s Maricamp Market Center.
Rudnianyn said his company has a letter of intent with “a grocery outfit” for one lot in the complex. A tire store and a restaurant are possibly in the works for two other lots.
“We’ve got to get a couple more of these sold,” Rudnianyn said, pointing to lots on a map of Maricamp Market Center. “We keep beating on Home Depot and Lowe’s. Lowe’s has got a lot of stores in Marion County. Home Depot’s only got one.”
Rudnianyn said he thinks drivers of growth in the Shores include the widening of Baseline Road, and relatively low land prices.
“You can buy a lot for $10,000 or $15,000, but you’re on well and septic tank,” he said of Shores lots. “When you get to these new subdivisions, it’s a lot nicer lot (with municipal water and sewer connections). The lots are $25,000, $30,000 and $35,000 for a similar type lot.”
The Ocala/Marion County Chamber and Economic Partnership, meanwhile, focuses primarily on locations along Interstate 75 when it comes to attempting to lure new employers, but the CEP does give Silver Springs Shores attention, said Kevin Sheilley, president and CEO.
“We’re actually out that way fairly often,” Sheilley said.
The Shores is home to larger manufacturers like Lockheed Martin and Townley Manufacturing. Sheilley said the CEP frequently shows space for lease in the Associated Grocers building along Baseline Road.
In terms of bringing new business to the Shores, Sheilley said the issue is “finding a company that’s not quite as time-sensitive when it comes to transportation issues.” For example, the Shores’ distance from I-75 generally rules out distribution companies.
“I think there’s some opportunities in manufacturing aimed more at the Florida market, for either a supplier to someone who is here, like a Lockheed, or the supplier of a product that’s going to be used within the Central Florida market,” Sheilley said.
He said he thinks the greatest potential is in sectors the CEP does not handle: commercial and retail development.
“It’s waiting for the right domino to fall,” Sheilley said. “Retailers will go where someone else already is, because they’ve demonstrated they can succeed there, so that lowers the risk. It’s usually restaurants people are interested in. Getting a couple chain sit-down restaurants opens the door for a whole slew of other things.”
Why it matters
Much is written about growth in Marion County’s southwest quadrant. But residential and commercial activity also is picking up in Silver Springs Shores. This story explains what is happening and includes a variety of voices, including economic development officials and developers.
